Dear Annie: There have been two different occasions where I sent a baby shower gift because I couldn’t make it to the shower. On both occasions, I never received a thank-you note. One was for the niece of a friend, and the other was for my own nephew and his wife’s baby shower.
I told my sister about not receiving a thank-you note from her son, and I told my friend that her niece hadn’t sent me a thank you. Both of them made sure to mention that a thank-you card WAS sent. I was surprised that neither of them made an attempt to resend a thank-you card to me, considering they knew I didn’t receive it.
If it were me, I would have gotten another one into the mail ASAP to make sure the person received a thank-you card. Have things really changed that much, that it was almost my problem that I didn’t receive a thank-you card, or am I just that old-fashioned? — Really Perplexed Dear Really Perplexed: Expecting other people to behave how you would have behaved is only going to lead to disappointment and unhappiness. There is nothing old-fashioned about a thank-you note or showing your gratitude.
But if both parties told you that they sent you a thank-you note and were grateful for your gifts, let it go. Maybe there was something wrong with the mail. Appreciate that they said they did send the thank-you notes.
“How Can I Forgive My Cheating Partner?” is out now! Annie Lane’s second anthology — featuring favorite columns on marriage, infidelity, communication and re.
